Hinge lock for vehicle doors



15 1967 i E. A. WILSON 3,336,075

HINGE LOCK FOR VEHICLE DOOR Filed Oct. 19, 1964 5 Sheets-Sheet l v INVENTOR. Ernest A. Wilson Fi BY A TTQ RN E15 WILSON Aug. 15, 1967 HINGE LOOK FOR VEHICLE DOOR v 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Oct". 19, 1964 INVENTOR. Ernest A. Wilson ATTORNEYS E. A. WILSON Aug. 15, 1967 5 sheets-sheet 3 Filed Oct. 19, 1964 n ma S E H W m A s e n w E 9 6 8 6 vATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,336,075 HINGE LOCK FOR VEHICLE DOORS Ernest A. Wilson, Arvada, Colo., assignor of one-half to Benjamin R. Loye, Jefferson, Colo. Filed Oct. 19, 1964, Ser. No. 404,693 14 Claims. (Cl. 296-146) This invention relates generally to door locks and more particularly to door locks used in combination with hinges on motor vehicles.

Motor vehicles such as automobiles, pickups and the like include as standard equipment locks for each door latch. In serious vehicle accidents these locks on the door latches have not provided adequate protection for preventing the door from flying open. On the other hand, door locks which directly prevent the door hinge from moving are less likely to be jarred open. A hinge lock is suitable for use as a primary door lock or as a supplemental door lock to that lock provided as standard equipment.

Accordingly, it is the object of my invention to provide a novel door lock for motor vehicles which is versatile and easily installed for use with various types of motor vehicle hinges.

Another object of my invention is to provide a motor vehicle door lock suitable for use as either a primary or a supplemental door lock.

It is another object of my invention to provide a motor vehicle door lock which acts positively directly on the hinge thereby reducing the likelihood of the door opening accidentally.

It is a further object of my invention to provide a motor vehicle door lock assembly which will lock and unlock all doors simultaneously.

Further objects and advantages of my invention will "become apparent as the following description proceeds,

and the features of novelty which characterize my inven- Cir tion will be pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming part of this specification.

The practice of my invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in the several views of which like parts bear similar reference numerals.

FIG. 1 is a fragmentary side elevation view of a door lock embodying my invention shown in the latching position;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary end elevation view of the door lock shown in FIG. 1;

. FIG. 3 is a fragmentary top plan view of the door lock shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary side elevation of the door lock shown in FIG. 1 but in the unlatched position;

FIG. 5 is a side elevation view of a door lock assembly embodying my invention for use with spaced upper and lower door hinges;

FIG. 6 is a side elevation view of a door lock assembly embodying my invention for use on a four-door motor vehicle;

FIG. 7 is a top plan view of the lock assembly shown in FIG. 6 and also includes the operators control; and ,F-IG. .8 is a fragmentary front elevation view of the manual control shown in FIG. 7.

Referring now to the drawings, and particularly to ,FIGS. 1 through 4, the door lock is illustrated in combination with a hinge for a motor vehicle door including a stationary arm 2 for connection with the vehicle post and a swingingarm 3 for connection with the vehicle door, said arms being rotatably interconnected at adjoining ends by a pin 4.

One portion 5 of the stationary arm 2 extends parallel to the post and is provided with openings 6 for receiving fastening means such as bolts, rivets or the like. Another portion 7 of the stationary arm 2 extends at right angles ice to the one portion 5 and terminates in a housing 8 for the pin 4. The swinging arm 3 includes a door attachment portion 9 extending parallel to a length of the door and having openings 10 for attachment thereto by bolts, rivets -or the like. An intermediate portion 11 extends at right angles to the door attachment portion 9 and parallel with the one portion 5 of the stationary arm 2. A pin housing portion 12 extends at right angles to the intermediate portion 11 and parallel with the door attachment portion 9 and interfits with the pin housing 8 of the stationary arm so as to rotate around the hinge pin 4.

Included in the door lock is a pin support 14 on the top of the one portion 5 of the stationary arm having a pin 15 extending laterally therethrough in fixed relation. A latch arm 16 has a pivot opening 17 intermediate its ends which receives the pin 15 and is thereby pivotally supported. At one end of the latch arm is a latch 18 including a shoulder 18d for engaging the outer side of the hinge swinging arm 3 in the locking position to be described more fully hereinafter. The other end of the latch arm 16 includes an opening 19 for pivotal connection. The pin support 14 could in the alternative be mounted directly on the vehicle post.

A connecting arm 20 extends between the pivot connecting end of the latch arm 16 pivotally connected thereto by a pin 21 and a positioning member (not shown) which normally holds the latch in an unlatching position (FIG. 4) and is moved to a latching position (FIG. 1) against a bias arrangement (not shown).

A positioning member 23 preferred for two-door motor vehicles is illustrated in FIG. 5 for spaced upper 24 and lower 25 hinges as are normally found in two-door motor vehicles. This positioning member 23 for holding the latching arms is mounted in a fixed position preferably on the interior of the automobile post. Included in member 23 is a slotted member 26 disposed horizontally having a base support 27 attached to one end which has openings 28 for affixing it to the vehicle post. The opposite end of the slotted member 26 is also substantially closed, thereby enclosing a spring 29 which holds or biases a plunger 30 to the rearward end of the slot. A pin 31 is attached to the plunger 30 for its pivotal interconnection to the connecting arms. The plunger 30 engages one end of the spring and is movable forwardly along the slot against the spring.

Upper 32 and lower 33 connecting arms extend between ends of upper 34 and lower 35 latching arms, respectively. .These arms pivotally connect at pin 31 to the plunger 30 and extend to a pivotal interconnection at respective ends of the latching arms with pin 36 connecting latch arm 34 and pin 37 connecting latch arm 35. Each connecting arm is disposed at an angle of or less with its respective latch arm when in the latching or unlatching position. Movement of the plunger 30 forwardly toward the front of the motor vehicle against the spring 29 moves the spring to a compressed position and pulls the latches of latch arms 34, 35 together in abutting engagement with the respective upper 24 and lower 25 hinges in a direction at approximately right angles to the movement of the plunger 30 thereby exerting a direct, positive lock on the swinging movement of the hinge. In the latching position shown by the broken lines, the latching arms are disposed at approximately 90-degree angles or less with the attached interconnecting arms as is shown by the dotted lines. Upon release of the plunger 30 the spring 29 returns it to the rearward position, moving the latches outwardly to the unlatching position. In the unlatching position the latching arms and interconnecting arms are disposed at substantially less than 90-degree angles.

A cable 38 is attached to and extends forwardly from the plunger 30 on each side of the motor vehicle to an operators control on the interior of the automobile, preferably a dash mounted control which will simultaneously pull forwardly and release the latches between latching and unlatching positions.

Referring now particularly to FIGS. 6 and 7, there is shown a lock assembly embodying my invention for locking a four-door motor vehicle.

Front 40 and rear 41 posts are illustrated in FIG. 6 generally for the left side of the motor vehicle. A duplicate arrangement is provided for the right side so that the following description of FIG. 6 is equally applicable for both sides of the motor vehicle. Front and rear doors (not shown) are respectively attached to the front 40 and rear 41 posts by a pair of spaced upper front 42, lower front 43, upper rear 44 and lower rear 45 hinges. Door locks for acting directly on spaced hinges similar to those previously described in FIGS. 1 through are attached to the posts for latching the respective upper and lower hinges.

For locking a four-door motor vehicle, the preferred embodiment includes a forward depending rod 47 and a rearward depending rod 48 each extending from a forward 49 and rear 50 pivoting connection at the top of the forward and rear posts, respectively, to a lower position below the lower ends of the posts. The bias spring previously included in the slotted positioning member is replaced by forward 51 and rear 52 springs attached to the lower end of respective rods 47, 48 and to a fixed forward 53, rear 54 support to pull the rods rearwardly. Intermediate the ends of the rods 47, 48, each rod is connected by forward 55 and rear 56 links to forward 57 and rear 58 plungers, respectively. The springs thereby hold the latches in a normally unlatching position.

At the lower end of the forward 47 and rear 48 rods, a spacing member 60 is attached therebetween to fixedly dispose the rods and interconnect the movement of all latches on one side of the motor vehicle. A cable 61 extends forwardly from the spacing member 60 for pulling the latches to the latching position.

A dashboard 65 of a motor vehicle is generally indicated in FIG. 7 disposed in spaced relation to the forward 40 and rearward 41 posts of the right and left side. An operators manual control mounted in the dash for actuating the latches from within the vehicle is illustrated. This control includes a lever 66 mounted on and extending through the dash into the vehicle interior connected centrally of its ends at a pivot point 67 and laterally movable to the left locking position and right unlocking position into a left slot 68 and a right slot 69 on the dash. A cable 61 extends from the spacing member on the vehicle left side through a pulley 62 to the end of the lever 66 opposite the dash front and is fixedly connected thereto. A cable 63 extends from the spacing member on the vehicle right side through a pulley 64 to the end of the lever 66 adjoining the dash front and is fixedly connected thereto.

Movement by the driver of the lever 66 against a bias 70 into the left slot 68 pivots the lever so as to pull the cables on both sides of the vehicle an equal distance and simultaneously pull all latches to the latching position. Movement by the driver of the lever into the right slot 69 releases the pull on the cables, moving the latches to the unlatched position.

A release control including a cable 71 attached to the front of the lever 66 and extending to a fixed support 72 under the hood of the vehicle is provided so that the door latches may be released from the exterior of the vehicle. This is a safety device for use, for example, in case of an accident in which there is no access to the inside control and the door lock must be released to open the door.

It is apparent therefore that a door lock constructed as shown acts directly and positively on each individual door hinge by abutting a side of the hinge in the direction of the hinge movement. The pulling force applied to the hinge lock is generally in a direction perpendicular to the latch movement with the latches for spaced hinge pairs moving toward each other in clasping engagement. All doors of a vehicle are latched by a single pulling force toward the front of the vehicle and unlatched by removal of the single pulling force.

It is understood that various sizes and shapes of hinges and sizes and shapes of motor vehicles will require general modification in the configuration and size of the illustrated lock. Although I have illustrated specific embodiments of my invention, various modifications will occur to those skilled in the art. Therefore, I do not desire my invention to be limited to the specific details illustrated and described and I intend by the appended claims to cover all modifications which fall within the spirit and scope of the invention.

I claim:

1. A motor vehicle door lock for engaging a door hinge, comprising a latch arm terminating at one end in a latch for directly latching the door hinge to prevent swinging movement, means adapted for carriage by a stationary surface of the vehicle for pivotally supporting the latch arm intermediate its ends, and positioning means adapted for support from a stationary surface of the vehicle including a slotted portion supporting a biased portion for slidable movement in the slotted portion and connected to the latch so that movement of the slidable portion along the slotted portion and against the bias moves the latch into the latching position.

2. A motor vehicle door lock for engaging a door hinge, comprising a latch arm terminating at one end in a latch for directly latching the hinge to prevent swinging movement, means adapted for carriage by a stationary surface of the vehicle for pivotally supporting the latch arm intermediate its ends, and positioning means adapted for support from a stationary surface of the vehicle including a a slotted portion supporting a spring-held portion for slidable movement in the slotted portion and which is connected to the latch arm so that movement of the slidable portion along the slotted portion to compress the spring moves the latch into the latching position.

3. A motor vehicle door lock comprising a door hinge having a stationary portion and a swinging portion, a latch arm terminating at one end in a latch for directly latching the hinge to prevent swinging movement, means supported from the stationary portion of the hinge for pivotally supporting the latch ram intermediate its ends, positioning means adapted for support from a stationary surface of the vehicle including a slotted portion closed at its ends housing a spring and plunger, as a seat for slidable movement of the spring and plunger therein, the spring holding the plunger at one end of the housing, and a connecting arm connected between the latch arm opposite the latch and the plunger, said connecting arm disposed at an angle with the latch arm so that by moving the plunger to compress the spring the latch is moved into the latching position.

4. A motor vehicle door lock comprising a pair of spaced hinges attached to the door and to a common post each of said hinges having a stationary portion and a swinging portion, a latch arm terminating at one end in a latch for directly latching each hinge to prevent swinging movement, means supported from its associated stationary portion of the hinge for pivotally supporting each latch arm intermediate its ends, and a common positioning means supported from the post including a slotted portion for slidably supporting a biased movable portion which is coupled to one end of each said latch so that by movement of the movable portion in the slotted portion and against the bias the latches are pulled together against the respective hinges into the latching position.

5. A motor vehicle door lock for engaging a pair of spaced hinges attached to the door and to a common post, comprising a latch arm terminating at one end in a latch for directly latching each hinge to prevent its swinging movement, means for pivotally supporting each latch arm intermediate its ends, and a common positioning means including a slotted portion supporting a biased movable portion which is coupled to one end of each said latch, the positioning means disposed on the post so that by movemenet of the movable portion against the bias the latches are pulled together in a direction approximately at right angles to the plunger movement and against respective hinges into the latching position.

6. A motor vehicle door lock for engaging a pair of spaced hinges attached to the door and to a common post, comprising a latch arm terminating at one end in a latch for directly latching each hinge to prevent its swinging movement, means for pivotally supporting each latch arm intermediate its ends, a common positioning means including a slotted portion attached to the post supporting a biased movable portion, and a connecting arm between each latch arm and the biased movable portion, each connecting arm being disposed normally at an angle of less than 90 with the respective latch arms so that by movement of the movable portion against the bias the latches are pulled together against the respective hinges into the latching position.

7. A motor vehicle door lock for engaging a pair of spaced hinges attached to the door and to a common post, comprising a latch arm terminating at one end in a latch for directly latching each hinge to prevent its swinging movement, means for pivotally supporting each latch arm intermediate its ends, a common positioning means including a slotted portion closed at its ends housing a spring and plunger, the spring holding the plunger at one end of the housing, and a connecting arm connected between each latch arm and the plunger, said connecting arm disposed at an angle with the latch arm so that by moving the plunger to compress the spring the latches are moved together into the latching position.

8. A motor vehicle door lock for engaging a pair of spaced hinges attached to the door and to a common post, comprising a latch arm terminating at one end a latch for directly latching each hinge to prevent its swinging movement, means for pivotally supporting each latch arm intermediate its ends, a common positioning means including a slotted portion closed at its ends having a spring and plunger, the spring holding the plunger to one end of the housing, and a connecting arm connected between each latch arm and the plunger, said connecting arm disposed at an angle of less than 90 with its repective latch arm so that by moving the plunger to compress the spring said latches are moved together in a direction at about a right angle with the plunger movement into the latching position.

9. In combination with the door hinge of a motor vehicle including a stationary portion attached to a post and a movable portion attached to a door, a door lock comprising .a latch arm terminating at one end in a latch for latching said movable portion to prevent swinging movement, a pivot pin fixedly mounted for pivotally supporting the latch, a positioning member attached to the post including a slotted portion closed at its ends and supporting a movable portion held at one end of the slotted portion by a biasing member, and a connecting arm pivotally connected at its ends between the other end of the latch arm and the plunger, said connecting arm disposed at an angle with the latch so that by moving the plunger against the biasing member the latch is moved against the hinge into the latching position.

10. In combination with the door hinge of a motor vehicle including a stationary portion attached to a post and a movable portion attached to a door, a door lock comprising a latch arm terminating at one end in a latch for latching said movable portion to prevent swinging movement, a pivot pin mounted on said stationary portion, the pin extending through the latch arm intermediate its ends for pivotally supporting the latch, a positioning member attached to the post including a slotted portion closed at its ends and supporting a movable plunger held at one end to the slotted portion by a bias ing member, and a connecting arm pivotally connected at its end between the other end of the latch arm and the plunger, said connecting arm disposed at an angle with the latch so that by moving the plunger against the biasing member the latch is moved against the hinge into the latching position.

11. In combination with the door hinge of'a motor vehicle including a stationary portion attached to a post and a movable portion attached to a door, a door lock comprising a latch arm terminating at one end in a latch for latching said movable portion to prevent its movement, a pivot pin mounted on said stationary portion, the pin extending through the latch arm intermediate its ends for pivotally supporting the latch, a positioning member attached to the post including a slotted portion horizontally disposed and closed at its ends and supporting a movable plunger held at one end of the slotted portion by a spring, and a connecting arm pivotally connected at its ends between the other end of the latch arm and the plunger, said connecting arm disposed at an angle of less than with the latch arm so that by moving the plunger against the spring the latch is moved against the hinge to the latching position.

12. In a motor vehicle having two front doors, each attached by a pair of spaced hinges to respective front posts, a door lock system comprising a latch arm terminating at one end in a latch and arranged for support from a stationary surface of the vehicle for directly latching each hinge to prevent its swinging movement,

means supported from each said post for connecting the pairs of latch arms of each door in a biased unlatched position and arranged between the associated spaced hinges for moving the pair of latch arms for each door toward each other into a latching position, and a driver control on the interior of the vehicle connecting to the latch pairs at each side for simultaneously pulling all the latch arms into the latching position and simultaneously releasing all of the latch arms to the unlatched position.

13. In a motor vehicle having front and rear doors each attached by a pair of spaced hinges to respective front and rear posts, a door lock system comprising a latch arm terminating at one end in a latch and arranged for support from a stationary surface of the vehicle for directly latching each hinge to prevent swinging movement, means supported from each said post for connecting the pair of latch arms of each door in a biased unlatched position and arranged between the associated spaced hinges for moving the pair of latch arms for each door toward each other into the latching position, means interconnecting the movement of the latch arm pairs on each side of the vehicle, and a driver control on the interior of the vehicle connecting to each side interconnecting means for simultaneously pulling all the latch arms into the latching position and simultaneously releasing all the latch arms to the unlatched position.

14. A motor vehicle having front and rear doors, each attached by a pair of spaced hinges to respective front and rear posts, a doorlock system comprising a latch arm terminating at one end in a latch and arranged for support from a stationary surface of the vehicle for directly latching each hinge to prevent swinging movement, means supported from each said post for connecting the pair of latch arms of each door in a biased unlatched position and arranged between the associated spaced hinges for moving the pair of latch arms of each door toward each other to the latching position, means interconnecting the movement of the latch arm pairs on each side of the vehicle, a driver control on the interior of the vehicle connecting to each side interconnecting means for simultaneously pulling all the latch arms into the latching position and simultaneously releasing all the latch arms into the unlatched position, and a release con- 7 8 trol accessible from the exterior of the vehicle connected 1,383,548 7/ 1921 Kroll 16-146 to the driver control for releasing the latch arms from 2,232,675 2/1941 Puett 292-129 the latched position. 2,559,548 7/1951 Seigneur 292129 2,765,648 10/ 1956 Hatcher 70-264 References CW1 5 2,815,085 12/1957 Whipple 180-82.2 UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,917,770 12/1959 Etny re.

1,138,516 5/1915 Ves er. 1,184,498 5/1916 f BENJAMIN HERSH, Primary Examiner.

1,197,612 9/1916 Ditlevson. P. GOODMAN, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A MOTOR VEHICLE DOOR LOCK FOR ENGAGING A DOOR HINGE, COMPRISING A LATCH ARM TERMINATING AT ONE END IN A LATCH FOR DIRECTLY LATCHING THE DOOR HINGE TO PREVENT SWINGING MOVEMENT, MEANS ADAPTED TO CARRIAGE BY A STATIONARY SURFACE OF THE VEHICLE FOR PIVOTALLY SUPPORTING THE LATCH ARM INTERMEDIATE ITS ENDS, AND POSITIONING MEANS ADAPTED TO SUPPORT FROM A STATIONARY SURFACE OF THE VEHICLE INCLUDING A SLOTTED PORTION SUPPORTING A BIASED PORTION FOR SLIDABLE MOVEMENT IN THE SLOTTED PORTION AND CONNECTED TO THE LATCH SO THAT MOVEMENT OF THE SLIDABLE PORTION ALONG THE SLOTTED PORTION AND AGAINST THE BIAS MOVES THE LATCH INTO THE LATCHING POSITION. 